The Editor's Desk

April 7th, 2000 Hello everyone! As usual, before we get into this batch of rants and raves, it's time to dig into the WetCanvas! mail bag: This site is WONDERFUL!! WONDERFUL!! WONDERFUL!! Thank you so much. Keep up the good work. I'm trying to work up courage to put my work in "ArtistNation". I've bought a "webpage maker " program. I looked at a few of the artists who sell in the $100 - $200 dollar range and this gave me courage. Hope to activate my site soon. Love the teaching articles and am grateful to the artists who give their time and expertise for free. Thanks a million. Barb. Thank for the kind words, Barb! We are truly fortunate to have so many wonderful artists (and people) in our midst here at WetCanvas!. Who knows?  Perhaps one day, you, too, will become a Contributing Editor...? :-) And speaking of ArtistNation.com, kudos to the many artists who've sold their works through Art-Agent.com: Jen de la Cruz, Larry Seiler, Kurt Dommermuth, Deborah Allen, David Swartwood, Katrina Joyner, and many more! For the laggards out there, head to artistnation.com and create your free web hosting and e-commerce account today! Okay, now on to this week's series of incoherent babblings, rants, and raves by the editor!

WetCanvas! Power Tips I was curious the other day and checked out the the WetCanvas! message forums to see how many topics and posts were active.  I was astounded to learn that the system contained 8,622 messages, across 1,039 different topics. These messages are a veritable gold mine of art theory, history, and technique (as well as humor). :-) Many users, however, may be unaware of the vast riches contained in the archives here. As such, here are a few tips to help you get the most out of the WetCanvas! message forums: Tip #1 - Searches in message forum Far and away, the easiest method of finding information in the message forums is to use the "search" feature. After entering the message forums, click on the search link (or this link, if you'd like to follow along in a separate browser window). Once there, you can search across the message forums by subject, keyword, etc. Word of warning - searching for something simple like "oil" or "watercolor" will result in a gazillion hits. Limit your search by adding additional keywords if possible. Tip #2 - How to pull up older threads By default, if a thread hasn't received activity in a while, it will be shuffled toward the end of the topic list. Look toward the bottom of your screen for quick links to subsequent topic pages. Tip #3 - How can I find others with similar interests? Easy. We've added a member directory, which provides information such as interests, home page info, ICQ data, email addresses, etc. The only information provided in the member directory is information that is provided by each user in their public profile. Look for the "member list" link at the top-level page in the forums, or by following this quick link. Tip #4 - How to search the message boards for messages by a particular user Found an interesting post by a user, and would like to see what else this person has posted? Have no fear. Using the member directory mentioned above, you can use the "search icon" to search for posts by a given user. Finally, to tease you even more, we have some "special surprises" coming soon, so stay tuned to WetCanvas! for more info. Until next time, keep your carpet covered with a .79 cent drop cloth, and happy brushstrokes!